Adaptation
by Moofy-Fan
Summary: They knew that there was something beforehand, but no one could quite remember just what that was. Instead there was only the constant cold and going day by day to get by. With the world frozen over, you have to adapt if you want to survive. When their own peronal routines are disrupted, the boys quickly realize how true that really is. Post-apocalyptic AU.
1. Ch 1: Cold

Hello everyone, how's this apocalypse treating you? Not quite apocalypse-y enough for your taste? Then how about some post-apocalyptic AU.

Haha, but really, I have no idea what I'm doing. This is just an idea that wouldn't leave me alone, and now it's a story. So I guess we'll see where this goes. Because it's not like I don't have enough things to work on at the moment or anything.

Chapter 1 – Cold

It was always cold here. Waking down the street, the small, black haired boy didn't really think much about this fact, despite the way his old, torn clothes wouldn't have held in much heat at all, and even as the thin frosting of snow and ice crunched underneath his feet.

It was a constant in his life at the moment, so much so that he couldn't remember what it felt like to not be constantly cold. He noticed the temperature now only when it got particularly bad, when strong winds carrying sleet would gush through the broken windows of the shambled building he was currently staying in during the night, or when he'd end up standing for too long in the slushy ice, the liquid seeping into his old shoes and causing his feet to go numb.

Other than that though, the freezing temperatures almost felt natural to him. He couldn't think of a time without them. It was like asking a fish if it was wet.

The black haired boy stopped, looking back over his shoulder at what he'd thought had been the sound of someone else walking along the old street. Frowning in confusion, there wasn't anything there, the street completely empty.

Shaking his head, he turned back around and continued down the street. It was going to get dark soon, so he needed to get back to the others. It wasn't a good idea to stay outside after it got dark, but he couldn't remember why exactly that was. They just… the dark was bad; the setting sun was already making him hear things that weren't there, after all.

He hadn't meant to stay out this long or go this far, but he had a wonderful habit of losing track of time. Thankfully at least, he wasn't the only one to have this problem. It was hard, after all, with no working clocks and no way to really be able to tell exactly where the sun was. There was always a film of grey clouds in the sky, blocking their view.

He couldn't remember when it hadn't been like that. None of them could, really.

There _had_ been a time like that though, right? A time before the cold and the clouds and no sun.

The others all thought he was batty.

By the time he reached the looming stone steps of their… home? It felt more like a hideout, any light filtering in through the clouds was basically gone, the street shrouded in darkness. Taking the steps slowly (he'd tripped and fallen plenty of times before in the daylight, he wasn't going to chance something like that happening in the dark like this) he could see a figure standing up by the entrance at the top. One of the great wooden doors still worked, opening and closing on its hinges with relative ease, if not a bit heavy for any one of them to move on their own. The other was perpetually open, the top hinge having snapped long before any of them had started staying here.

As he got closer, he was able to make out just who it was, the thin, pale form dotted with freckles and bright red hair easily giving it away.

"_Simon!_" the older boy's voice hissed, his anger evident. Even as Simon stared down at his feet, shrinking back in fear, he wasn't surprised. Jack was always angry.

"What do you think you're doing, coming back here so late? We won't go looking for you if you go missing you know!" he yelled, and just barely Simon managed to nod, attempting to keep from stuttering out his answer.

"I know… I just lost track of time is all," he muttered. Jack was still glaring at him, before snorting at his response and rolling deep blue eyes.

"Whatever. You're batty, going out like that. I don't even know why we let you stay here sometimes," he said, turning around to head back inside. The younger boy ignored the comments, far too used to being called batty to care, and knowing that even if he did come back late, they weren't going to kick him out. Jack was difficult at times, yes, but he wouldn't stoop so low as condemning someone to their death.

Or well, at least Simon hoped that he wouldn't. He had his doubts sometimes though.

"Oh, and there isn't any food left. Come back earlier next time and you might get some," Jack told him offhandedly, before splitting away from the younger boy without a second thought. Even though he wasn't looking at him anymore Simon nodded, before starting over to the little section of their hide-away home that he liked to consider his.

The inside of the building was really rather large, definitely enough space to house the small group of boys who lived there, and then some, if any more were ever to come. The others never thought about that happening though. There wasn't anybody else in… in as far as Simon or any one of them had gone. It almost seemed like they were the only people left in the world at times.

Simon hoped dearly that wasn't actually the case.

Even though the place was large, there weren't many rooms at all. In actuality, it was mainly just one huge room, although there was one smaller one up in the front that Jack had long ago clamed for himself.

In the main room, there was a long walkway down the center, with row after row of these long, wooden benches that were attached to the floor, so that they couldn't move them any. On the walls, most of the windows had blown out, but unlike all of the buildings around them, this one had black iron rods creating spider webs of patterns throughout them, and the pieces of glass that were left you could just tell under the dirt and grime hadn't been clear, but dyed strange colors instead for some reason. Tall columns stood in between the two main sections of benches and two smaller wings off to the side, also filled with the rows of the same seating.

There were these little open boxes attached to the backs of these, so that the people sitting behind them could use the boxes to put thing in. They weren't very big though, so you couldn't put much. Simon always wondered if there had been something specific that used to go in there, but of course none of them knew.

Up in the front there was another area that jutted back, which was where the doorway to Jack's room was. The door had long since disappeared, if it had ever been there to begin with.

Besides that, the only thing else notable up front was a large stone table, which was currently empty. A few of the boys were actually sitting on top of it now, talking leisurely. Jack was up there now as well, from the looks of it leading the conversation, although Simon couldn't hear what they were talking about.

Most of the others were sitting on the benches though, since it was better than standing and there was no way all of them could attempt to fit on the table. Simon did spot one of them laying on the step way up to the front area though, staring up at the ceiling, deep brown eyes that almost looked red in the right light flickering across the wooden boards that held it up, almost seeming like he was counting them or something like that.

None of this was of any surprise to Simon, who quietly made his way over to the back of one of the wings, going all the way to the end of the bench so that when he pulled his legs up he could lean against the wall. No one had taken any notice to him coming in late, which was good. He didn't particularly like too much extra attention on himself.

There were only eight of them all together, including Simon. Enough for them to be able to get by if they all put in a half-decent effort. They didn't have to talk to each other or even particularly care about each other, as long as they were capable enough to help get food and odd bits and ends of clothing and such. Just the things they needed to survive.

Of course, most of the boys did in fact talk to each other, and Simon did care about the others enough to want to make sure they were all okay. He just preferred to keep to himself. Roger, still lying on the stairs and counting the ceiling boards was a lot like that too. And Simon assumed that he did care about them all as well, since he was always there to help whenever Jack ordered them around.

Jack, the de facto leader of their odd little group. Simon wasn't too sure how that had come about, but it was probably just a simple case of Jack just deciding he would be leader, so that was what happened and no one asked any questions. It wasn't really smart to get into an argument with him anyway.

The way the redhead acted concerned Simon sometimes, but it wasn't like he had anywhere else to go, and he was sure that deep down Jack wasn't really a bad person. Just abrasive and loud and very self-conscious, but if you told him that last thing he'd probably hit you.

A large gust of wind seemed to shake the walls, bits of falling snow coming in through the broken windows and landing on Simon, although the boy barely noticed them. It was always cold here, after all, and the bits of ice water seeping through his thin clothes where the snow was now melting weren't anything new at all.

Lying down on the bench, Simon pulled a worn, hole-filled blanket out from underneath where he sat and covered himself with it, closing in eyes and attempting to get some sleep. Even though it was dark, it wasn't particularly late, but there wasn't anything else for him to do, and if he stayed up he would just get hungry.

Clutching the blanket as tight to himself as he could, the black haired boy curled up into a ball, his hands up by his face so that he could attempt to breathe a bit of life back into the numb fingers.

It was always so cold here, and even though it seemed like everyone else had forgotten, Simon tried to remember what it actually felt like to be warm. Even if the others thought him batty for it.

* * *

Annnnd there. Yay the choir. But where's Ralph, you say? And Piggy? And Samneric and the bunches of lilluns? You'll find out as soon as I do, because seriously I have no idea where this is going. I just asked Simon what was going on with him, and this is what he told me.

I do hope you enjoyed so far though. First time writing Lord of the Flies, so let's just see where this takes me. Fun fun fun.

Well, thanks for reading, and please review.


	2. Ch 2: Flames of Change

Hello there reading people. This chapter came much faster than I'd thought it would, because things magically started to come together for me. That and writing these characters was really fun to do.  
So yes, here's the next chapter for all you lovely people out there.

Chapter 2 – Flames of Change

The fair haired boy stared at the huge burning mass only a few feet away from him. His mind had blanked for a few moments from the shock of how quickly everything had spiraled out of control, causing him to simply freeze in place as the flames burned through the old crackling wood and effortlessly melted away all of the surrounding snow.

It wasn't very long before the blasting heat became too much and he had to take a few more steps back. The actual warmth reminded the blond boy why he'd even decided to start the fire in the first place. He'd just been cold was all. So yes, while he was definitely warmer now, there was no denying that it had gotten just _slightly_ out of hand.

"Damn it, you really messed up this time Ralph," the boy grumbled to himself, running his free hand down his face as he sighed. The other was still clutching a nearly empty box of matches by his side.

He hadn't meant for this to happen at all. When he'd found the damp little pack, he'd meticulously went through nearly all of them, most too wet to actually light. Finally though, one had, and he'd managed to light enough old hay to grow the tiny flicker of light into something bigger.

The hay hadn't been the only thing burning though, and thinking back on it now Ralph ran a hand through his hair in irritation. He hadn't thought this through at all. He'd just wanted to be warm though. He hadn't even been able to remember what being warm felt like, having nothing but old, torn up gloves with one of the thumbs missing to help cover him besides his worn out short sleeve shirt in a pathetic attempt to ward off the elements. At least his pants were long, held up by a single overall strap. He had no idea what happened to the other.

All that he had known when starting the blaze was that fire meant heat and warmth. Warmth was life. Fire was a good thing.

It hadn't quite clicked in his mind that the floor he'd started the fire on had been made of old, brittle wood, or that the flames would manage to spread enough to eventually engulf the entire building. By the time he'd realized just what was happening and attempted to put them out, it was already too late, and all he could really do was run outside before he got trapped and died.

So now here he was, just staring, basking in the heat of the flames that were currently consuming the small wooden barn he'd been calling home for the past… for the past… for however long, it didn't really matter.

Ralph jumped back when the flames that had been dancing across the rooftop caused the already weak boards to collapse in on themselves. Huge sprays of ashes and smoke flung high into the air, and the twelve year old had to increase the distance between himself and the building yet again as it started to get into his lungs, causing him to double over in a fit of coughs.

He still stayed close enough so that the flames offered him some warmth, figuring that if he was going to lose the barn he might as well enjoy the heat of the fire while it lasted.

Several hours later Ralph was sitting in the same spot, watching as the last tiny flicker of flames finally started to go out, leaving only the black seared remains of the outer walls left. He had an urge to try to keep it going, so that he could continue to ward off the cold, but anything he could have used as firewood had already been burned beyond recognition. The entire place smelt of smoke, but the blond had long gotten used to it. Carefully scanning what was left of his 'home' he couldn't help but slump slightly in defeat.

He couldn't stay here anymore. The roof had been one of the first things to collapse, and the walls that were left didn't look like they were very far behind. A strong wind coming through would topple the whole thing in a heartbeat. The snow was already starting to come down again, too. At the moment it was light, the flakes quickly melting away when they came in contact with his skin and clothes, a few leaving a soft dusting of white in his hair. That didn't mean it wouldn't pick up soon though, and he had no place to stay.

Slowly, the blond boy picked himself up off the ground, shaking the snow out of his hair as he did so. Turning away from the remains of the building, he stared off around him. A crumbling stone wall was a little ways off to the right, and beyond that a large rolling moor. He could just make out the edges of a dead forest on the other side.

To his other side there wasn't all that much to look at either. The remains of what might have been a house at one point that had crumpled long ago, and what Ralph knew to be a dirt path under the snow that ran alongside the wall. He didn't know how he knew that, since he couldn't right remember what this place looked like without the constant blanket of white. It was there though, he knew that much.

Unsure of what else to do, he started away from the burnt remains and towards where the path would be. He knew the way for quite a while pretty well, having explored his immediate surroundings numerous times.

It got pretty boring, being here all alone. But it had always been like that, at least for as long as he could remember it had anyway. So he just accepted it. There hadn't been any particular reason to try to find somewhere else either. He'd had shelter, and a small supply of food in the wild berries and roots that struggled through the cold to grow in the moor. So while it was boring, he hadn't minded it all that much. It was just the weather. The one thing he couldn't stand was freezing all the time.

Really though, that would have been better than losing his home for just those few short hours of heat. Now he was cold again, he didn't have a shelter and he had to leave his food supply in order to find one. This wasn't good. This just wasn't good at all.

It wasn't too long at all before the surrounding area started to grow unfamiliar to the boy. The crumbling wall had stopped and was left behind long ago, and the sun was starting to set as well. He had no clear way to know if he was actually staying on the path either. The only signs around him a few dead trees every now and then and the remains of buildings too broken and crumbling to be any shield from the outside at all.

After a while, it started getting too dark to try to move anymore, and the blond made his way into what he assumed had once been the inside of the house. Only three walls were left standing now, but if he curled up in the one corner the wind blew the snow in such a way that it didn't hit him very much.

Blowing on his hands through the gloves, he attempted to rub some life back into them, quickly trying the same with his feet as well. His shoes were old. He didn't know how old, but they were also too big for him and let the snow seep into the sides as he walked. Eventually he managed to fall into a light sleep, shivering despite being used to the cold. Maybe it was because he didn't have a roof anymore, or the hay he used to cover himself with was long gone, having burned away into ashes and smoke.

When Ralph woke the next morning the snow had thankfully stopped for the moment. Rubbing his arms, he tried to warm up enough as he thought about what to do. A gnawing hunger ate at his stomach, and he considered heading back to the moor and looking for some food. That was so far back now, and without any clear markings of the path he didn't know if he would even be able to find his way.

Reluctantly standing up, the boy decided that the only real option was to keep moving forward until he eventually did find something. After all, it couldn't just be nothing forever, right? Surely he'd be able to find something…

After walking for a few more hours, he was seriously starting to think that might not be the case. He knew that he probably wasn't moving all that fast and the broken down buildings were slowly but surely growing in numbers, but the cold and the hunger weren't the most encouraging things in the world.

He figured it was probably a bit after midday when he'd started to happen upon a multitude of the broken remains, all close together. Most of them seemed to be made of stone, and many seemed to be in even better shape than his old little barn had been. Scrapping away at the snow with his foot, he saw that the grown had also changed, shifting from dirt to stone as well.

Ralph allowed for a small smile to worm its way onto his face. Sure, he didn't see anything that he could eat yet, but as soon as he did he could easily stay here instead. Inside of those buildings the stone probably blocked out the wind and helped them be even warmer than his barn ever had.

The fact that the whole area was empty, a deathly quiet over the entirety of the ruined town didn't faze him in the slightest as he quickly started continuing his way down the street. He was used to being along, so this was nothing new at all.

The joy of finding this potential new home started to dampen slightly as he continued to search and come up empty with any food. Maybe that's why there wasn't anyone here, because there wasn't anything to eat.

There might just not be anyone here because there just wasn't anyone though.

Giving up on scowering the streets for now, he decided to look through some of the old buildings instead. Looking around him, the most intact one was up at the nearest corner, and he decided on a whim to give it a chance.

Walking up to it, Ralph could tell that at one time, the front had large display windows, most of which were now blown out now, replayed with flimsy sheets of wood instead. Walking up to the entrance, he was a bit surprised to see that the door was still both intact and shut. Trying the knob, the old rusted metal didn't give nearly as much resistance as he would have though, and the blond boy slowly stepped inside.

It was pretty dark inside, the wood placed in the windows blocking most of the light. Just barely he was able to make out a long counter running parallel from one of the walls, empty shelves lining the others and a few tables in the center of the room.

Taking a few more tentative steps, Ralph decided to leave the door open, not about to shut himself in with no light. He just wanted to look around a bit for now. This looked like it could have been a store or something at one time. Maybe there was still some stuff left in the back. If they sold food, some of it might still be good enough to eat…

He was halfway across the room when something suddenly crashed in the silence behind him, causing a shock of terror to run through the boy as he quickly spun around to see what it was.

There was nothing behind him, and Ralph slowly took a few more steps back, eyes scanning every inch of the dimly lit room.

"What is it? What's there?" he asked the returning silence bravely. A sound of something shuffling rose up from behind the counter, which Ralph immediately turned towards, eyes locked as he waited for whatever it was to show itself.

"I-I should be the one a-asking you questions. Just who are you?" A boy around his age asked, poking his head fearfully and yet daringly out from under the counter. A frown was set onto his very round face, but his eyes were wide behind thick glasses.

Slowly Ralph let out the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding, much of the tension and fear melting away. Whoever this kid was, he didn't look like much of a threat in the slightest.

"I'm Ralph," he said, feeling that those two words explained everything clearly enough and starting to glance about the room again as the other boy carefully made his way out from behind the counter. "Do you live here?" he asked, turning back towards the boy. The chubby child nodded, still eyeing Ralph with a bit of suspicion.

"Yes. Where did you come from? Ain't nobody ever come by here before," he said, and Ralph thought for a moment before pointing in was he was pretty sure was the right direction.

"I was living out that way, by a rock wall and a moor, but the place I was staying burned down and I had to leave," he explained, deceivingly leaving out the fact that he'd been the one to cause the fire in the first place. The other boy nodded once again, appearing to become much more at ease as they spoke.

The fat child looked like he was about to start talking once again, but Ralph cut him off with his own question.

"Do you have anything to eat?" the other boy's mouth quickly shut, turning into a frown at being interrupted like that. He quickly recovered though, nodding just slightly.

"I have a bit of food left. Not much at all really, but I suppose I could share it with you," he said hesitantly, starting towards the back room just as Ralph had been before he'd interrupted him. Once again a smile found its way onto the blonde's face as he followed the other boy. At least he'd have something to eat now.

When they reached the backroom, Ralph saw that he hadn't been lying when he said he didn't have much food left. For a few moments, his mind struggled unsuccessfully to bring forth just what it was that the small, brightly colored pieces were called.

"Just some candy. I used to have other food, but it all ran out. Been trying to find more, but…" the boy trailed off, and Ralph nodded in understanding. Even though he didn't really look like he needed any food at the moment, running out was certainly not a good thing at all. He'd probably started looking a while ago once he started to run low, and if he hadn't found any by now it wasn't very likely that Ralph would be able to either, at least not here. Unwrapping a red and white cane shaped treat, the blond stuck it in his mouth before speaking.

"Really can't stay here then, if there's no food," he said absently, the fat child nodding in agreement.

"Of course not, but I wouldn't know where else to go, and it's dangerous to go off alone," he said, a slightly expecting gleam in his eyes as he look at Ralph. The blond simply ignored it though, too wrapped up in the nearly overwhelming taste of the candy in his mouth to care. He could definitely understand how this boy had run out of food if it all tasted like this. He wouldn't have wanted to stop eating either.

"I went off by myself, and I was fine," he said after a moment, the chubby boy frowning once again.

"Well maybe you can but I can't, my…" he trailed off, brow furrowing in concentration as he searched for the next word. "I can't on account of my…" he tried to restart. Ralph quickly grew bored with waiting for the boy to finish his sentence, taking another candy and popping it in his mouth.

"You'll remember it if it's important," Ralph told him absently. The other boy seemed to reluctantly agree, starting to eat a bit of the candy himself as well. The two were quiet for a few moments, and Ralph had to restrain himself from eating as much as the sweet treats as he could. He doubted this boy would be too pleased if he was to do that, and if he left some now then that meant he could probably have more later.

"So, what's your name?" Ralph asked at last, getting a bit tired of calling him simply 'boy' in his head. A smile broke out onto the fat boy's face as he started to answer.

"Oh, I'm…" the smile instantly dropped as he faltered, moving his mouth, but no sound coming out. "I'm… my name is… my name…" the boy quickly started shaking his head furiously. "No, no, that's not it. They used to… someone used to call me that, but it's not my _name,_" he insisted stubbornly, talking more to himself now instead of Ralph.

"You can't remember your name?" the blond ask, bringing his attention back to him.

"I… I suppose not. I haven't told anyone it in so long; it must have just slipped my mind. I'm sure it'll come back to me though. I'll remember soon as I'm not thinking about it, I will," he said, and Ralph nodded simply to agree.

"You said you remembered something people used to call you?" the blond asked, just looking for something to address him by now. Reluctantly he nodded, not looking at Ralph anymore as he answered.

"Yes, well, it wasn't really… I can't remember who'd called me it, but I don't think it was very-" he said, but Ralph cut him off once again.

"What was it?"

"Um, it was Piggy, I think" the round boy practically whispered. A large grin broke out on the blonde's face, and he started laughing at the name.

"Piggy! Piggy will work! I'll call you Piggy," he said happily in between bouts of laughter. The other boy was frowning still, but reluctantly gave in.

"A-alright, but just until I remember what my real name is, you hear? I'm sure to remember it soon!" he insisted, and Ralph nodded, far too pleased with the silly name and the lingering tastes of sweets in his mouth to do anything but. He didn't even know the last time he'd laughed like that.

The two had fallen into a silence once again after that, this one lasting a bit longer than before. Ralph busied himself by messing with the remaining candies, sorting them into little piles based on different criteria. Types, then colors, then shapes… Piggy simply watched him, taking off his glasses to clean them on his shirt as he did.

"So, it okay if I stay here tonight?" Ralph asked, relieved when Piggy immediately started to nod.

"Of course. It's gets boring by yourself, and it's not safe being all alone," he said, and Ralph nodded. He didn't really see how being by yourself was dangerous, that's all he'd ever been up until now after all, but it wasn't really important enough to argue about. As long as Piggy was letting him stay here, after all, it didn't really matter.

The chubby boy had started to talk once again, although Ralph really wasn't paying him much attention. It was warmer in here than it had been in the barn, although there was still a cool chill throughout the whole place. He tried to remember if either of them had shut the door, but couldn't. Well, one of them would go see eventually, and it wasn't like they had to worry about anyone else coming along. Piggy had said that no one ever comes here, after all.

Focusing back on the other boy, Ralph couldn't shake the inherent strangeness of not being alone anymore. He hadn't minded it, but it certainly wasn't a change for the worse. Piggy was definitely an odd one, but he didn't seem all that bad.

The change from what had been before, the similar days all blending together into one so that he couldn't recall how long or even truly what had happened had been so sudden. It seemed to have consumed his whole life, spreading and devouring just as fast that the fire that had destroyed his barn had.

And while fire was destructive and dangerous, it was also warmth and light and _life._ Fire was a good thing, so maybe this change would be too.

* * *

Ralph and Piggy, Ralph and Piggy! Piggy was surprisingly fun to write, I did not see that coming. Ralph and his little obsession with fire was fun to weave in too. I hope you all liked the chapter, and just how this is going so far.  
Well, as always thanks for reading, and please review.


	3. Ch 3: Disrupting Normal

Yay, another chapter, because when my stories are new they're all I want to write and I tend to neglect my other ones slightly. _Especially_ if it's a fandom I don't have any other stories for. Which hasn't happened in like… two years, not counting oneshots.

But anyway, here's the new chapter, hope you enjoy.

Chapter 3 – Disrupting Normal

When Simon awoke the next morning the snow had stopped falling in through the iron-webbed windows. Most of the other boys were still asleep; the majority of their bodies hidden from his view as they lay curled up on the hard, wooden benches. All of them had different shoddy blankets drawn over them in an attempt to keep warm, and a few even had makeshift pillows.

Pushing himself off of the bench, the young boy kept his tattered blanket wrapped around his shoulders for now, not wanting to let go of the little warmth it offered him quite yet. Standing on his toes, the only boys that weren't where he could see them were Jack and Maurice. Of course, Jack slept in the little room up front, so there was a good chance that he was still in there, sound asleep like the others.

Maurice had a tendency to wake up almost inhumanly early, even for Simon, so the fact that he was already up and gone didn't surprise him in the least. Even though he'd probably gone to sleep much earlier than the other boy, he was still nearly always the first one up.

The constant hunger that gnawed at his stomach was worse than normal this morning, reminding Simon that he hadn't been able to eat the night before. Reluctantly unwrapping himself from his thin blanket, the black haired boy folded it neatly before tucking it back under the wooden bench again. The wind was blowing in through the windows, nipping at his skin, but he simply rubbed his arms to try to work some heat back into them.

Careful not to disturb anyone, he started walking towards the exit. He needed to find some food for himself, as well as try to get something for the others as well. If he didn't bring back something every so often, Jack would get upset with him. After what had happened last night, he didn't want to chance irritating the redhead any more than he already was.

Slipping around the perpetually open door instead of trying to bother with the shut one, there was a fresh crusting of ice over everything, making the stone steps even more traitorous than they usually were. Very slowly, Simon started down the stairs, taking each step at a time, making sure he had regained his balance before moving down to the next one.

"Simon!" the sudden voice cut through the air, startling the young boy and causing him to lose what little balance he had. His feet slipped out from under him, causing him to slide down the last few stairs and land in a heap on the snow covered ground.

"Ow…" he mumbled, pushing himself up onto his knees, rubbing his elbow where it had wacked against the stairs a bit as he did. Looking up, he saw Maurice standing a few feet away from where he now sat, doubled over in laughter.

Simon quickly stumbled back up to his feet as Maurice regained control of himself and walked over to the younger boy.

"Um, good morning Maurice," Simon said, trying to regain what little dignity he had left. The other child smiling at him before brushing some of the snow from his fall off of his shoulder.

"Morning. Where are you heading off to?" he asked, not sounding patronizing or interrogative like Jack would be whenever he asked things like that. Instead, he just sounded simply curious. Maurice was one of the only boys who ever went out of his way to talk to him or be nice to him though, so this wasn't too much of a surprise. Maurice was friendly with everyone though, that was just how he was.

Even still, out of everyone he was probably the boy that Simon most considered an actual friend.

"Just out to find some food to bring back, since I missed dinner last night," the black haired boy explained, Maurice nodding in understanding.

"Okay, good luck. I was out looking near the field, but there wasn't as much growing there as I remembered from yesterday. I think someone snuck back and started eating some of the fruits on their own," he to Simon, surprising him slightly. Someone sneaking out at night? That didn't sound right at all, none of them ever went out during the night; it wasn't safe.

Before he was able to ask if he was certain though, Maurice started shaking his head, as if he himself thought the idea absurd before beginning to walk up the steps.

"I'd try by the river if I were you, no one's been down there in a while, so there's probably some stuff growing, ya know?" the older boy suggested, stopping on one step and turning back around to face Simon. He smiled; nodding in agreement and thanking the older boy before watching him almost effortlessly climb the rest of the ice covered stairs.

Simon sighed softly under his breath before starting away, towards the river. How could Maurice and all of the other boys be so in control sliding around on the ice? He was always struggling to keep himself from spinning off and hurting himself, and he usually failed at that. The snow wasn't bad, he could deal with the snow everywhere, but he just didn't have the balance to keep himself upright on the ice.

It was quite a bit of a walk to reach the river that Maurice had suggested, which was probably why no one had been down there in a while. It was past the 'field' that they usually went to. It wasn't so much a field, but a place where most of the buildings that had been before were crumbled down to the very bare bones, allowing for small, hearty plants to try growing through the snow and ice.

What they called fruit wasn't really fruit either, but small roots and stems and tubers. That was just what they'd taken to calling them, for whatever the reason.

Jack was always talking about how they had to find better food, but none of them knew how they were supposed to do that. There wasn't much else around here, and they didn't have anywhere else to go.

Simon reached the field now, most of the tiny plants looking like they were in varying degrees of death under the fresh ice. A small inkling of panic started fluttering inside of the boy's stomach. What if they ran out of food? None of the others ever seemed to think about that as being a possibility, but Maurice had said there was less than normal, and Simon highly doubted someone would have sneaked out.

Trying to push those thoughts from his head for now, he walked through the field, deciding he would take Maurice's advice and try the riverbed instead. The river was always frozen over, but sometimes long skinny reed plants would grow in the icy mud along its sides.

The snow was starting to fall again now, the wind picking up as well. Simon started rubbing his hands together; trying to remember how much farther it was until the river. Once he got there, he could eat a few of the reedy plants and then pick some more to take back to the others. That way he could make sure he ate and Jack wouldn't be mad at him as well.

Over the sound of the wind rushing past him, something other than his own feet crunching through the snow met his ears, and he quickly turned to see what it was.

Simon frowned, what could be called a street behind him completely empty save for the crumbling ruins. Just like when he was heading back yesterday…

"Hello?" he called out hesitantly, hoping maybe it was just one of the other boys messing with him. Maybe Maurice was trying to play some sort of joke or something? After standing for nearly a minute though, there was no answer, and Simon quickly turned back around. It was probably nothing, just the wind tricking his mind or something like that. That or one of the others was trying to scare him. It wouldn't have been the first time, and there wasn't anything else it could be, after all.

The frozen river was in sight now, and Simon carefully made his way down the steep bank to where the reeds grew. Rubbing his hand together, he started snapping a few of the plants as close to their bottoms as he could. He would have tried to pull them out with the roots, but the mud was far too frozen for the small child to work through.

Once his fingers had started to grow numb he stopped, crawling back up the bank and sitting down in the snow. Taking one of the reeds, he started chewing on one of the ends, the earthy taste filling his mouth. It wasn't too unpleasant, but it didn't taste very good either. That was fine though, taste didn't matter much since it would get rid of his hunger all the same.

He'd been sitting in the snow for about ten minutes, having almost finished the reed (he was only going to eat one now, he'd bring the rest back for the others to all share) when the sound of something screaming caused him to jump, scrambling to his feet in surprise and nearly choking on the food in his mouth as he did.

The scream had quickly stopped, transforming into a loud crying instead. For a few seconds, all Simon could do was stand frozen to his spot, completely taken off guard by the unusual happening. Dropping the reeds he hadn't realized he'd been clutching to his chest, he started running towards the sound of the cries.

The sound was coming from a bit down the river, and looking over the edge of the bank, Simon found himself just staring for a few seconds, trying to make sense of what he was seeing.

There was a boy down there, a boy he didn't recognize. Down amongst the reeds and mud, looking as though he must have fallen from the top of the bank. He didn't seem to notice the black haired child watching him, hand pressed up to his eyes as he continued to cry. He looked even younger than Simon, probably six at the most. His face was red, either from the crying or the cold, or both, and his mouse colored hair was a mess, covered in mud and ice from his fall.

Lowering himself down to the bank, he tried to figure out just what was going on. There'd never been someone else just showing up like this. Where had he come from? How did he get here by himself?

"Hey there," Simon said gently, kneeling down next to the child. The boy's head snapped up, not having realized that anyone else was there until he'd said anything. A few tears were still leaking out past his eyes, but his loud cries had stopped as he stared surprised at Simon.

"It's okay, did you fall?" he asked, the boy trying to wipe away the slowly freezing trails of tears and mud off of his face as he nodded. Simon smiled softly at the boy, relieved that he'd seemed to have stopped crying for the moment.

"What's your name?"

"Percival Wemys Madison. The Vicarage, Harcourt St. Anthony, Hants, telephone, telephone, telephone…" the small boy said, confusing Simon greatly. The string of words that Percival said made little to no sense to Simon at all, but there was something familiar about it all the same. Like they _should_ mean something to him, but all he could draw was a blank. The boy looked like he was about to start crying again though, so Simon quickly decided to change the subject.

"Do you want something to eat Percival?" he asked, distracting him from his tears, and he nodded once again. Simon quickly stood up, helping the younger boy to his feet as well. It was a bit difficult getting him back up the bank, Percival tending to slip in the icy mud even worse than Simon did, the mousey boy having to hold back years whenever he would fall.

Eventually, the two made their way back up the bank, and Simon led him over to where the reeds were still lying in the snow where he'd dropped them. The fallen snow had started to cover them a bit, but Simon quickly dusted it off, snapping one of the long reeds in half before handing it to the small child. Percival inspected it for a few seconds before sticking it into his mouth, crewing on the end.

"How about I take you back to back to where I live?" Simon asked, the boy nodding, not bothering to remove the reed from his mouth in order to answer him. He wondered how long it had been since he last ate. Maybe he had been the one Maurice had thought was taking food from the field last night.

The older child quickly bent down and picked up the rest of the reeds, starting to lead Percival away from the river. The child followed him silently, staring down at the ground as he continued to gnaw on the reed.

The snow was starting to come down harder now, and Simon wondered if any of the other boys had bothered to go out in this storm. There was never any telling with them, but it was pretty likely that at least a few of them would still be back at the hideout. That would certainly be a good thing, since he really needed to find someone to explain all of this to.

It took a bit longer than it would have with just Simon walking by himself to get back, since Percival was smaller and therefor walked slower, as well as the boy having slipped and fallen on patches of ice quite a few times. Thankfully, he wasn't crying as much anymore, tending to only whimper a bit after a few falls.

Eventually, the large stone building came into their view, and Simon started walking a bit faster. Percival managed to keep up with him, especially when they walked up the stairs, both taking them rather slowly.

The little boy looked around curiously as he followed Simon into the building. Despite the storm, the only person out in the main room was Roger, sitting up against the wall by the door to Jack's room.

"Come on," he whispered softly to Percival, laying the remainder of the reeds down on the stone table at the front before starting over to where the dark boy sat. "Um, Roger?" he asked, catching his attention. Before Simon was able to say anything, the older child's reddish eyes locked onto Percival, he moving to hide fearfully behind the black haired boy's leg.

"Who's that?" Roger asked, which was rather rare. Usually he wasn't the one to try to ask the first question, but Simon guessed that this situation was just so odd it was a worthy of an exception.

"Uh, his name's Percival. I found him down by the river. Have you seen Jack?" he asked. Roger nodded, staring at the boy for a few seconds longer before pushing himself to his feet.

"Out getting food. I'll get him," Roger said simply, not bothering to say goodbye or anything else before starting away from the two. Once they were alone again, Simon led the smaller boy over to one of the benches, grabbing the thin blanket from where he'd stashed it that morning and draping it over his shoulders.

This was strange. This was… things like this don't happen, but he couldn't think of why that would be. Surely there was a time when they'd all happened upon each other, right? He couldn't remember though, not even how he'd managed to get here. It was just like it had always been that way. That didn't make right sense though, since there had to be a beginning. Why couldn't he think of the beginning?

"Don't worry, the others will be back soon," he told Percival, the small child nodding as he clutched the blanket closer to him. Simon wondered how he managed to survive all on his own. How long had he been on his own, anyway? Just where had he come from?

And maybe most importantly, where there others from where he was as well? Simon had no idea, but it would be best to wait until Jack came back before trying to figure out for sure.

One thing was for certain now though, and that was that they hadn't been the last people alive, even if it had seemed that way. And there were probably others too, maybe not too far, if this boy had managed to survive the journey.

Simon decided that he wanted to try to meet them, whoever they were. He wanted to know what the world was like outside of their little routines of gathering food and trying to survive. Surely there must be something out there.

Or maybe he was just jumping to conclusions. Either way, something told him that things were going to start to get very different from what he was used to.

* * *

Percival Wemys Madison! I don't know, lots of people don't, but I like that kid. He was adorable, and his name is awesome. But yes, slowly but surely everyone is getting introduced.  
But yes, as always, thanks for reading and please review.


	4. Ch 4: On the Seashore

Hello everyone. I've gotten around to writing another chapter of this story, yay for that. Not as fast as my last couple of updates, sorry about that, but this is closer to the normal amount of time between updates for me because I completely overload myself with way too many stories to actually keep track of.

Chapter 4 – On the Seashore

It turned out they had indeed left the front door open, which Piggy had quickly gone back into the front room to shut. Afterwards the chubby boy showed him where he could sleep, a section of the back storage area that was slightly cut off from the rest with empty shelves. Piggy only had one old, thin blanket, which he had offered to let Ralph use.

Despite wanting to take it greatly, to horde any and all warmth he could get, the blonde reluctantly told him to keep it, they could find something for him to use later. Ralph told himself that it was warmer inside of the little shop than it had been in the barn anyway, so he didn't _really_ need a blanket.

When they woke up the next morning, they two boys ate about half of the remaining candy. Ralph wanted to keep eating, even though he knew that it would be better to try to save as much as they could for later, until they could find more food. He was still hungry though, and it really did taste so good, even if it left a sticky residue in his mouth, making him rather thirsty. Piggy had started putting away what was left though, so he managed to restrain himself from asking for even more.

"Do you have any idea where we should go, Ralph? I've never gone very far from here before," Piggy asked, seeming content to let him take the lead for now, and the blond boy shrugged, not too worried about the where as long as it had something for them to eat and a place to stay out of the cold.

"Not really. I guess we could look around the town some, and if we don't find anywhere we could go and try to find a different one," Ralph said, and Piggy hesitantly nodded.

The fat boy seemed very reluctant to leave the building. He stopped in the doorway for a few moments, what was left of the candy wrapped up in the blanket clutched in his hands and a frown on his face. Ralph looked back at him curiously.

"What'sa matter?" he asked, a hint of impatience in his voice.

"Is this really a good idea?" Piggy asked back. Ralph just shrugged, starting to walk away as he answered.

"I don't know, but I'm not staying here if there's nothing to eat. You don't have to come, but I'm leaving," he called back, starting off down the icy street. He could hear Piggy stay in his spot for a few seconds longer, before calling after him and rushing to catch up. Within seconds the chubby boy was by his side again, bent over a bit, panting from the small run. Ralph slowed down just slightly in order to allow him to catch his breath, to which Piggy said a very quick thank you in between gasps for air.

He started breathing at a normal pace a few moments later, taking his glasses off in order to wipe away the fog that had formed on the lenses from the warmth now radiating off his pink face.

The two had walked in silence for a while after that, Ralph scanning the ruined streets for anything besides snow and stone and Piggy careful to not slip on any of the icy patches that had formed over the night. Every so often the shorter boy would glance over at Ralph, looking like he wanted to say something but then deciding against it.

"Where have you been looking for food?" Ralph asked suddenly, surprising Piggy. The chubby boy pushed his glasses a bit farther up his nose as he seemed to think the question over.

"Mostly just in the surrounding area. I'd say I've gone at least four or five blocks looking in all directions. I haven't tried leaving the outskirts of the town though, or goin' too far," Piggy said, and Ralph nodded. That really wasn't too far at all. Maybe if they went to the other end of what was left of the town where Piggy hadn't been they could find something.

He suggested that to the other boy, and the two started off in what Ralph guessed would be the right direction. Truthfully, he figured if they just kept going straight they would get to the other end of town soon enough.

The ruined town really wasn't all that big, and they managed to reach the other end in about three hours, having stopped a few times to allow Piggy to catch his breath. Ralph tried to fight back his irritation with having to keep stopping in the cold, but it was hard as the time went on and the snow started falling slowly around them again.

Once they finally reached the end of town however, there wasn't much to see. More broken stones and snow and ice and nothing growing or anything. Ralph frowned in irritation, crossing his arms and kicking at the snow in order to try to get at the ground and try to see if there was perhaps anything underneath.

"This is only the first place. We can keep looking around and I'm sure we'll find something," Piggy said, and reluctantly Ralph nodded in agreement, rubbing his hands and blowing on them to work the life back into them. The snow was still falling light enough to keep from being any real bother, so he guessed there really wasn't anything else they could do but try to keep looking.

"Right. Let's keep going then," Ralph said, kicking at the snow one last time before starting off again.

The rest of the day they spent scowering the outskirts of the town, coming up just as empty each time. Soon any light began to fade away, and the two chose one of the nearest buildings to hole up into for the night. They each ate a bit of what was left of the candy, saving just enough to have some to eat tomorrow as well.

They would run out then though, and then they _really_ needed to find something. They had already made plans to leave this town for naught and try for another, although Ralph couldn't help but be worried about that, and he could tell that Piggy certainly was. Who knew how long it would take to find another town, Ralph had been lucky to stumble upon this one when he did.

Of course, no one said it had to be a town. If they found another place like his old barn, that would work too. As long as there was shelter and food. That was what they needed. Shelter and food and _warmth. _

The next morning the two started out early. Ralph wanted to try to get as far as possible before the day ended, and thankfully the weather had cleared up. The sky was still eternally shrouded with grey clouds (he'd asked Piggy what color the sky was above the clouds, and he'd said he supposed it was just clear, or maybe white) but there wasn't any snow or ice coming down, which was certainly a good thing.

Piggy wasn't asking to stop as much today as he had yesterday, but he did keep looking around them as if he was expecting something to pop out of the snow and attack them.

The buildings out here seemed much worse off than the ones that had been in the town, which Ralph guessed was because they had to deal with the harsh weather all by themselves, instead of bunched up together for protection.

Maybe Piggy was onto something with it being dangerous by yourself and safety in numbers.

The scenery was a lot like what it had been when Ralph had been walking on his own before, if not a bit more ruins to each side of them. The blonde wasn't even too sure what they were looking for when it came to food. His moore had worked, but what other kinds of food sources were there? He wasn't all that sure, really.

It was nearly dark again when the monotonous scenery finally changed a bit. Father down from them the ground started sloping, before turning from snow to what seemed to be an endless sheet of ice, stretching out as far as either boy could see.

Ralph quickly started over, Piggy following after him right away as well.

"What is it?" Ralph asked, not turning towards the shorter boy, dark blue eyes scanning the horizon. Piggy took of his glasses, cleaning them on his shirt as he started to speak.

"I take it it's the, um, what's it called again? The sea, that's it. A frozen over sea," he explained, Ralph nodding ever so slightly. He was a bit surprised that Piggy was able to remember that, since he'd seemed to have forgotten so much else, but he figured it didn't really matter.

"Think it's safe to cross?" he asked, Piggy immediately shaking his head.

"I wouldn't try it. If the ice broke you'd fall through and freeze to death, no doubt about it. Plus, it looks like it goes on forever, I don't think we'd find anywhere to stay out there," he said. Ralph quickly agreed with him. Much too risky to try to cross something like that.

"Well, it's getting dark, let's try to find somewhere to sleep for the night," he said, starting down along where the frozen sea met the ground.

After another ten or so minutes of walking small shapes started appearing in the distance, and Ralph began walking a bit faster. Soon it became clear that they were the remains of buildings, and the blond sighed in relief at having found somewhere they could stay. He stopped in front of the first building, waiting for Piggy to catch up after having fallen behind a bit.

It was made of wood, like his barn had been, but quite a bit smaller, and was falling apart just like everything else. Even with that though, it seemed to be holding up pretty well. The door was still connected to the wall, after all.

"We can stay here for now," Ralph said, turning to Piggy as he panted slightly and nodded. There were a few more buildings still ahead of them, but they could check those out tomorrow before they left. He doubted there would be anything of any importance in them anyway.

Opening the brittle door, the hinges gave a bit of resistance before allowing Ralph to move it enough so the two of them could step inside.

To Ralph's surprise, the inside wasn't a barren wasteland, with maybe just a few empty shelves or tables like he'd been expecting. That's all there had ever been inside his barn or Piggy's store the any of the other buildings they'd been in.

Broken crates and boxes filled to their brims with things neither boy could right recognize were scattered around the small room, and the walls were lines with shelves, strange objects covered in rust and dust precariously stacked one every surface.

Slowly Ralph made his way into the room, careful to keep from knocking anything over.

"What is all this stuff?" he asked, keeping his voice as low as possible. He wasn't sure why, but it didn't feel right to speak very loudly here. If felt like they were invading someone's home.

"I'm not sure about all of it," Piggy answered, turning to carefully poke around at some items inside of the crates. Ralph nodded, not really paying him too much mind as he pulled a long, skinny stick out of a crate. It didn't seem to be made of stone, and there was a string attached to it that went through these little loops and then this crank thing near the end.

Most of the things here were made out of that not-stone, what was it called again? It was all covered in, um, rust now. That was right, rust. It was called…

"Metal," he muttered, running his hand along the cold metal stick. He tried to remember what this would have been used for, why the string was important, but it wouldn't come to him.

Placing it carefully back in the box, he turned to look at one of the shelves lining the walls. Most of the things in here looked sharp and rusted and like they could really hurt you if you tried to mess with them. Maybe it wasn't the best idea to stay in this building for the night. They should probably try one of the others farther down instead.

"Wonder what's in here," he mused out loud, picking up a sealed can off of the shelves. Piggy turned over to him, inspecting what was in his hands for a moment before shrugging.

"Is there a way to open it?" the shorter boy asked, starting to walk over now. Ralph frowned; banging the can against one of the boxes closest to him to see if that would work.

"I donno," he said, reluctantly putting the can back where it had been before turning towards Piggy. "But we should probably check out those other places instead, it looks too dangerous to stay here for the night," he suggested. Piggy nodded absently, but it was clear that behind his glasses his gaze was focused on something behind the blond boy.

"What are you staring at?" he asked, turning around to try and spot what it could be himself. Nothing immediately stuck out in the piles of junk though, and Piggy inched by him to point to something just out of reach on the shelves.

"That, up there, I remember something like that from before. It's a shell; just what did they call it exactly? A conch I think, someone had one and they… something," he trailed off. Ralph was able to spot what he was pointing at now, something white and smooth hidden amidst the dark dented metals. Carefully making his way towards the shelf, he had to stand on his toes to try to reach it. For a few seconds he thought he wouldn't be able to, but then his fingers just managed to brush up against its surface and he pulled it down.

"What did they do with it?" Ralph asked, not bothering to question when the 'before' he'd mentioned was. He knew there had been a before as well, but he couldn't quite fathom just what that was. Instead, he started dusting the shell off slightly as he inspected the strange object. It was a lot prettier than anything else in this building, and it didn't look like it could cut him like all the metal did either.

"Um, they… they made it make a sound, a real loud one. Not sure how, I think he might have blew into it somewhere," Piggy said. Ralph looked away from the conch to Piggy, smiling slightly.

"Sounds neat. You're getting better Piggy, maybe you'll be able to remember your name soon," Ralph said, taking the shell with him as he started out of the building. A huge smile made its way across Piggy's face as he bounded after the taller boy.

"Well of course I will! I told you that it's only a matter of time before I remember," the chubby boy said confidently, and Ralph just nodded, a bit glad to be able to step out of the dust. It was starting to get even darker now, but thankfully the other buildings didn't look very far away.

The blond turned his attention back to the shell in his hands, a curious look on his face as he turned it over, checking it out more clearly now that they were outside. It wasn't completely white like he'd though, but actually tinted a light pink.

"You said they blew into it to make the sound?" he asked, and Piggy nodded. Ralph carefully looked for a spot on the shell where it seemed like it would make a sound until he found a small hole at one end. Pressing it to his lips, he softly blew into the shell, frowning and pulling away when nothing happened.

"I think you need to do it harder," Piggy suggested, and Ralph nodded, putting the shell up to his mouth again and blowing the air forcefully through. This time, a large blast sounded, startling both boys and causing the blond to quickly stop, pulling the shell away in surprise. A smile started making its way across his face, and he began laughing.

"Oh wow," he said, before lifting the conch again to make the sound. Piggy was starting to laugh now as well, until Ralph had to stop so that he could breathe again.

"Okay, let's go see if those places are better to stay in than this one," Ralph said, and Piggy nodded, the two starting through the thin snow towards the other buildings. The blonde decided to keep the shell with him for now, although he wasn't entirely sure why. It was interesting and fun and he couldn't rememer ever having something like that before. As they got closer, the buildings ahead started to come into clearer shapes, small wooden huts much like the one they just left, which Ralph hoped would be not as cluttered as the first.

The two were right up near the building, Ralph about to open the door when he heard Piggy gasping in shock behind him.

"What?" he asked, turning back around to look at the chubby boy in the fading light. Snow was starting to fall again, and he wanted to get out of it as soon as possible. Piggy pointed up towards a dirty ice covered window that Ralph hadn't noticed before and was frankly shocked that it hadn't been destroyed yet.

"Something moved inside!" he said in a hissing whisper. Ralph backed up, taking his hand off of the doorknob as if it had burned him.

"Are you sure?" he asked, Piggy immediately nodding. The blond stood starting at the door for a few moments, not entirely sure what to do. A thought came to him, and he pulled the shell still in his hands up to his mouth, blowing into it and creating another great, short blast.

The second the noise stopped he could hear something knocking around in the building, turning towards Piggy in concern. After a few seconds the sounds stopped and Ralph hesitantly gripped the doorknob once again. Taking a deep breath, he twisted the knob and stepped inside.

This building was a bit larger than the last one, although it might have just looked that way because it wasn't as cluttered up. There was still a very decent amount of boxes and shelves stacked haphazardly together, but nowhere near the state of discomfort or danger as the other.

Taking a few more steps inside, Ralph carefully scanned the room, not seeing whatever it had been to cause the crashing before or what Piggy had seen in the window.

"Ralph?" the chubby boy whispered from the doorway, Ralph quickly turning back around and shushing him before continuing farther in. Whatever it had been was probably hiding. The blond carefully made his way around the room, looking for any places that could be used to hide in.

Listing up a dirty old sheet half draped over one of the shelves in the back, Ralph jumped back in surprise when he heard something squeal.

"What is it?!" Piggy asked frantically, still not daring to step past the doorway.

"I don't know, um, come out," he said, switching his attention between Piggy and whatever was under the old cloth.

There was the sound of whispering could be heard faintly for a few moments, before eventually two small heads peaked out from underneath. Ralph couldn't help but stare in surprise at the two as they looked up at him in a mix of curiosity and fear.

They looked completely identical, from their white blond hair to their blue eyes to pale skin. The only way Ralph was sure it wasn't just seeing double was that one of the boys had a floppy, worn old hat sitting precariously on his head, looking like it was going to just fall off at any moment's notice.

"Who are you-"

"And what was that big sound?"

* * *

Yay, Samneric and the magic conch shell. I was debating for a while on whether or not the conch should be an actual conch or change it to something else in order to fit the post-apocalyptic setting, but I decided to just stick with a conch.

Well, as always I hoped you liked the chapter, thanks for reading and please review.


	5. Ch 5: Questions and Answers

Hello people, new chapter time. I quite like writing this story, it's very fun. I don't really have anything else to say today, so I'll just let you get on with reading the chapter.

Chapter 5 – Questions and Answers

"Who in the world is _this?"_

Jack asked, his eyes shifting from the small boy on the bench to Simon and then back to the boy again. Simon couldn't remember a time when the he sounded so confused, the rest of the boys whispering and shifting restlessly behind the redhead. They had returned quickly after Roger set out to find them, so Simon assumed that they must not have been that far off from their hideout. It was either that or they had really hurried after hearing about what had happened.

Percival was shrinking in on himself, pulling the blanket Simon had given him so that it hid his small frame even more so and trying to avoid the bewildered and curious gazes falling on him. He looked just a few steps away from crying once again, so Simon quickly cleared his throat and started to answer the redhead's question himself.

"Um, his name's Percival Wemys Madison, I found him by the river," he said quietly. Jack stared at him for a moment as if running this information through his head before nodding, turning his attention back to Percival afterwards.

"Where did you come from?" Jack asked, trying to keep control of the situation no matter how strange it was to them. Percival peaked up from cowering at all the attention to speak.

"T-the Vicarage, Harcourt St. Anthony, Hants, telephone, telephone, telephone…" he stumbled out, the same strange string of words that had made no sense to Simon as before, but he guessed now was supposed to be a place. Before Jack was able to say anything, a rise came from the other boys.

"Where's that?"

"I don't know."

"Who's Anthony?"

"I thought his name was Percival?"

"What's a telephone?"

"_Shut up!_" Jack yelled, quickly bringing all of the questions to a halt. His eyes scanned the boys, as if making absolutely sure that no one was going to start speaking before he could continue.

Percival was cowering again, having taken the blanket and wrapped it up over his head in order to hide himself even more so. In the silence that filled the large room now, Simon could easily hear him whimpering softly underneath the thin fabric.

"It doesn't matter where he came from. We have enough room, so he can stay here, but only if he helps out," Jack declared. He turned from watching the small child to looking at the other boys, obviously relishing the way everyone was focused on him. It was no secret that Jack loved to be the center of attention. It worked out well that way though, since when Jack ordered them around they actually got things done. And Jack was always ordering them around.

"We all need to help out, or else we won't be able to survive, understand?" he asked, everyone quickly agreeing with him. It made sense after all. They didn't have much, so in order to keep themselves afloat they all had to pitch in.

Percival was really young and small though. Simon couldn't imagine that he would be able to actually help out all that much. Of course, as long as he tried to help was what really mattered, right? He couldn't imagine Jack or anyone trying to throw the boy out if he couldn't quite keep up with the rest of them. They weren't cruel, after all.

The other boys slowly started to disperse around the large room. Jack quickly stalked up to Simon, stealing another glance at Percival as he did, as if he still couldn't quite believe the boy was real yet. Simon didn't blame him; he couldn't really wrap his head around it either.

"You found him, so you can watch after him, alright?" Jack said, Simon quickly nodding. That actually brought a bit of relief to him. If Jack was asking him to watch after Percival, then he clearly didn't expect the small child to completely take care of himself like most of the other boys did.

He didn't mind the idea of having to take care of the younger boy, and truthfully he couldn't quite see any of the others putting up the time of day to. Everyone tended to look after themselves for the most part. They were just all together because… because it was safer that way, and it had always been like that.

No, not always. There was something before… something… there was a _reason_ they were together…

Simon was knocked out of his thoughts by Percival softly tugging on the end of his sleeve. The black haired boy quickly turned his attention to him and smiled softly. It was clear that Percival was still a little scared from everything that had just happened.

Wherever he had been, there probably hadn't been a lot of people around, which was possibly why he was so afraid of all the attention. Of course, Simon didn't like a lot of attention on himself either, and he'd lived with these boys for as long as he could remember, so maybe that wasn't it. He might have just been frightened by Jack, that wouldn't be very surprising if he was. There really wasn't any way to know but to ask Percival himself.

"Yes?" he said, trying to not sound intimidating to the small boy at all. Of course, intimidating was never a word that really described him, that was more Jack, or Roger if you could get him to actually pay any attention to you. Plus, he wasn't too much older than Percival, actually, maybe only three years at the most. The only other boy here who'd been younger than him before was Henry.

Percival let go of his sleeve, pulling his fists close to his chest and messing with the blanket still wrapped around his shoulders. He was staring down at his feet, looking slightly afraid of whatever it was he wanted to say.

Simon heard him mumble something into the blanket, but wasn't able to make out the words. Sitting down next to Percival on the bench, he tried to get as close as he could to the boy without scaring him even more than he already was so that he could hear him better.

"What was that?" he asked, hoping Percival would be a bit clearer this time around. The small child lowered the blanket just slightly as he repeated himself.

"It's safe here?" Percival asked quietly. Smile quickly smiled and nodded, not wanting to hesitate and make the boy think he was lying. It was safe after all. It was safe as long as they all stuck together and didn't go out at night because it wasn't safe at night for some reason he couldn't remember. He didn't need to tell Percival about that right now though, it would only worry the poor boy.

"Of course it is, why wouldn't it be?" he asked. Percival didn't look at him as he answered, but he was speaking a bit clearer and louder now, which Simon was grateful for. He didn't think it was loud enough that any of the others could hear what they were saying though.

"I… b-because of the beastie…" he mumbled, confusing Simon even more. This boy certainly was strange.

"Beastie?" he questioned, and Percival nodded, tears starting to prick at his eyes again from whatever it was he'd apparently remembered about this beastie.

"I-its big and scary. The others saw it," he explained. Truthfully, Simon wasn't too interested in this beast that Percival was talking about. It sounded like an animal or something like that. Maybe a bear or a wolf or something of the sorts. He didn't know if there were any around here, but there might have been some where Percival came from.

What he _was _suddenly very interested in were the 'others' that Percival had just mentioned.

"Others? Were there other people with you before I found you?" he asked, trying to keep himself from sounding too excited or demanding and scaring the skittish boy again. He nodded, seeming to get a bit distracted from his fear of this so called 'beastie' by Simon's question.

"Uh-huh. But don't know where now they are now," he was shrinking in on himself again; the fear seeming like it was starting to come back as he continued. "T-the beast got um, I think. I-it got one b-boy. Ate 'im up," his voice was quivering now as he unsuccessfully tried to hold back more tears. Simon quickly tried to calm him down, not wanting his crying to attract the other boys.

"Shh, it's okay. I said it's safe here, remember? This is a good place. There's no beast, nothing's going to hurt you," he reassured Percival, who slowly managed to stop his crying. "Why don't you lie down and try to get some sleep, okay?" Simon suggested. The small boy nodded softly, lying down on the spot, blanket wrapped around him as he closed his eyes. Not even five minutes later he was out cold.

Simon slowly stood up from the bench, careful to not wake Percival before starting over to his 'spot'. He kept replaying what the boy had said over in his mind. Hopefully as he started to adjust to staying with them and got less fearful he would be able to explain more.

Oh, he really didn't want to wait that long for the answers to the numerous questions piling up in his head now. Had everyone from where he'd been before actually died? Simon supposed it was very possible, although he dearly hoped that wasn't true. Just what did he mean by a beast, anyway? Surely it had to be some sort of large animal, that seemed like the only real explanation.

The black haired boy chewed on his lip in frustration as he tried to come up with answers to questions he couldn't possibly be able to know. A gust of strong wind blew into the building, and Simon huddled in on himself slightly. Percival had his blanket now, and he certainly wasn't going to go take it from the boy. He could find himself something else to use soon enough, he'd be fine until then.

"Hey," Simon's head shot up at the unexpected voice. Maurice was leaning over the back of the bench in front of him. "When I said it'd be a good idea to check the river for food, I'd thought you'd come back with a couple of reeds or something like that, not a whole n'other kid to feed," he said, an obvious joking tone to his voice. Simon smiled hesitantly as he shrugged and glanced over at Percival.

"Yeah, I didn't think something like this would happen either," he said. He wondered if he should tell Maurice about what Percival had said, about how the people he was with had been attacked by some sort of beast. He didn't want to cause unnecessary worrying, but where ever he'd been probably wasn't very far from here now if he'd walked the whole way by himself. There was a chance that it could move on to where they were just as well as the boy did.

Maybe that was why it was dangerous to go outside at night. Some sort of beast or animal might be the reason.

Something inside of him made Simon decide to stay silent about that for the moment, quickly thinking of another question instead.

"Um, Maurice?" he asked, trying not to sound too nervous. The older boy just looked at him questioningly, and Simon quickly continued before he decided to back out. He just didn't want the others to think him even battier than they already did. This wasn't something crazy to ask about though, especially with what was going on right now.

"Do you remember when you first met the others? Or what you were doing before you met them? I mean, we all had to end up here like Percival at one time or another, right?" he asked. Maurice stared at him for a moment, seeming to actually think over the questions before shrugging a bit hopelessly.

"Don't really know, I can't remember what happened. I don't think you should worry about it though, I'm sure if it was important we would know, after all," Maurice said, and reluctantly Simon nodded, even though he didn't quite agree with that. He wasn't going to try to press it though. He was lucky that Maurice had even given it this much thought instead of just assuming that he was crazy like everyone else.

"I suppose," he said, Maurice starting at him for a few seconds longer.

"Yeah, just don't stress over it, okay? It's not important," the older boy repeated, pushing himself off of the bench before starting over to where a few of the other boys were. Simon saw him sit down next to where Roger was, starting to talk animatedly to the other boy, who seemed to be basically ignoring him.

Like he'd thought before, Maurice was nice to everybody. Even the people who didn't really seem like they wanted him to be.

Simon found himself sighing slightly as he curled up onto himself to fight off the cold. Maybe the others were right, and it really wasn't important how they all ended up here or what had been around before or why it had changed. There had to be a why if things had changed, right? That seemed like a reasonable thing to think.

Even though he didn't want to, maybe he should stop thinking about all of that for a while. The others didn't and they seemed fine.

And maybe, he could focus on trying to find those other people Percival had mentioned instead.

The young boy spent most of the rest of the day in his corner, staring off at the iron webbed windows as he tried to think of how the best way to find someone he'd never met and wasn't even entirely sure actually existed. The only time he'd left was to get himself and Percival something to eat for dinner.

He decided that Percival himself would be his best bet, but he had to wait until the boy got comfortable living with them first before asking him to show him where he'd come from and such. A week, he would wait a week for Percival to adjust, and then he would try to find those other people.

Simon quickly promised himself that he wouldn't tell anyone about what he was planning to do. Not because he thought it was a bad thing to do or anything like that, but he didn't want the others to talk him out of it, since they probably would try. It wasn't safe to stay out at night, and he would most likely have to in order to find where Percival came from.

They certainly wouldn't let him go if they ended up finding out about the beast that the younger boy had mentioned either. It was crazy; he would get himself killed by some wild animal. He knew they would say these things because he himself was saying them, and it was his plan in the first place.

Everything he said though was just below able to make him decide against it, though. It wasn't a smart move, he was probably going to pay for it later, but his curiosity had gotten the better of him.

* * *

I promise things will start happening soon. I tend to have a habit of really long drawn out beginnings in order to set any actual plots I have in mind up, so sorry about that if it bores you.  
And as always, thanks for reading and please review.


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